Fort Lauderdale Emerald Society Dips Into Politics With Award To U. S. Rep. Patrick Murphy
BY BUDDY NEVINS
The Emerald Society of Fort Lauderdale is wading into the green swamp of partisan politics.
The usually non-partisan group, which annually holds one of Broward’s most attended and anticipated political breakfasts, this year has named U. S. Senate Democratic candidate Patrick Murphy as Irish Person of the Year.
Patrick Murphy
One problem.
Murphy may be the Irish Person of The Year…for West Palm Beach. He represents a stretch of Florida roughly from West Palm Beach to Fort Pierce.
His connection to Broward is that he once lived here. Oh, and he’ll be on our ballot later this year for Senate.
I guess that is enough for the Emerald Society organizers, which include D’s and R’s.
The event always had non-partisan patina, which may be why so many judges attended. The group has traditionally bent over backwards to pick non-partisan pols or ones that were not currently in high profile races for the award.
Not this year.
Murphy is the leading Democratic candidate to replace Marco Rubio in the U. S. Senate.
But there is another big Democratic hopeful, U. S. Rep. Alan Grayson. And three leading Republicans – Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera and U. S. Reps. David Jolly and Ron DeSantis.
“Yeah, its political,” conceded Kevin Tynan, a long-time Broward Republican activist and a director of the group. “You have to bring in a big name to sell the room.”
The group hopes 500 people attend the breakfast, which is what it drew last year. The 2015 Irish Person of the Year was top Broward prosecutor Brian Cavanagh, a much-admired courthouse fixture.
The event raises money for student scholarships. Even if you are not interested in Murphy, the breakfast is always a good opportunity to mix with the courthouse crowd and pols who attend but are not being honored.
It’s always a fun time.
Here is the info:
66th Annual Emerald Society Breakfast
Sunday, March 13, 2016
9:30 AM
Bahia Mar Beach Resort
801 Seabreeze Boulevard
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316
We will be honoring the following worthy individuals:
Honorary Irish Person of the Year – Hon. Carlos Rebollo
Irish Person of the Year – Congressman Patrick Murphy
Humanitarian of the Year – Doreen and Keith Koenig
Irish Mother of the Year – Hon. Barbara McCarthy
Rebollo and McCarthy are on the ballot this year, but these are non-partisan, very low visibility judicial races.
Ticket info at www.emeraldftl.org or e-mail emeraldftl@gmail.com
February 19th, 2016 at 10:37 am
I’m not as concerned about this being a political pick, but the reality is that Patrick Murphy is not in fact of Irish descent.
About 100 years ago, Abraham Murfstein and his family came to this country from Germany.
When they came to the US, their name was changed at Ellis Island and they decided to go with an Irish name Murphy so they could fit in with the others coming in with them.
The name stuck and for decades the family has slowly adopted an Irish culture as their own.
Patrick Murphy is in reality Paul Murfstein.
You heard it here first.
Trump 2016 – Make America Great Again.
February 19th, 2016 at 3:56 pm
WHY DO PEOPLE BLOG N BLOGS POST PROVABLE LIE?
First it was lies about President Obama’s birth now the son of wellknown Irish American Roman Catholics from Miami is falsely accused of being a grandson of a Jewish immigrant.
Yes John Kerry n Madelein Albright lied about being children of converted Jews but everyone knew they were lying because their real ancestry was known to Jewish historians n genealogists just as Congressman Murphy’s genuine ancestry is known in Miami
February 20th, 2016 at 5:04 am
My Dear Count Chocula –
You clearly don’t comprehend sarcasm and snark. Please go back into your coffin after a pint of AB-.
Love,
Frankenberry
February 20th, 2016 at 12:56 pm
Snide ANti-SEMITISM isn’t funny. I’ll it out every time WHETHER COWARDS WITH FAKE NAMES WHO CAN’T SPELL CHUDZIKIEWICZ and CHODKIEWICZ CORRECTLY LIKE IT OR NOT.
But on a positive Mr. Ahearn has shown deftness and wisdom in organzing this year’s always splendid event with great food good people and interesting political gossip. The tickets are less than a Broadway Show BUT MUCH MORE ENTERTAINIBG!